Star Wars Epics (also known as Epics) is primarily a play by post roleplaying site, with forums dedicated to Star Wars discussion as well as media, culture, entertainment, and current events. Set 13 years after the Battle of Endor, the site is currently setting the bar as an independently owned and operated, unofficial, not-for-profit, roleplaying-centered Star Wars website, with an entirely flame-free fan community. The use of the word Epics is no attempt to exaggerate the quality of the site; rather it is an attempt to show an aspect of the site's roleplaying which is unique to the genre: each member, from the original founders circa 1999, and everyone that has joined since, can trace their original characters from their first "introductory post" through one continuing massive story, up to today.

Why should you join Epics?

Longevity: Star Wars Epics has been in existence as a roleplaying group in various forms since 1999 and has grown steadily, despite jumping formats several times.

Originality: Star Wars Epics has been copied more than once, in both design and content, by more boards than we can count. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, in our opinion -- but we still try to stay one step ahead.

Management: Our admins read every post made on the board every day, respond to every PM, and are accessible on various IM devices, and every question posted by anyone is answered in 24 hours or less -- usually our replies are within minutes. Oh, and we actually roleplay in the stories ourselves too!

Activity: Star Wars Epics doesn't pad our number of daily posts with spam threads, or spamming in hidden forums, bumping old topics, misrepresenting our member count, or hacking our "members online" list to show fake visitors. What you see is what you get, and we feel that honesty is the best policy.

Community: Star Wars Epics is entirely composed of mature, intelligent people of all ages (17-40+), all of whom get along with each other and with the staff. Our board is drama-free, and we have had to hide threads or edit posts for content only a handful of times, in the entirety of our online existence (11 years).

Talent: Admins from other Star Wars roleplaying sites have have approached our site to write when they want quality roleplaying. (Of course they usually back out when they see us, but what can we do?)

But don't take our word for it. Here's a sample of our roleplays (chosen at random from our recent threads):

Hey guys,I was searching around for a Star Wars: The Old Republic Community and was unable to find one, so I decided to start one.

The communities main purpose is the discussion of news about the upcoming MMO, as well as discussion about currently revealed gameplay features and what you would like to see them do. What you like/dislike, etc.

If you guys have any suggestions or questions feel free to direct them my way.

The Emperor, Darth Vader, Boba Fett, and the rest of everyone's favorite Star Wars characters are back with more laughs and plenty of inside hardcore fan details in Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode II. The special airs this Sunday, Nov. 16 on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim at 11:30 PM. Starwars.com chats with Robot Chicken creators Seth Green and Matthew Senreich about what fans can expect from the new episode as well as special guest star appearances. Seth also talks about his upcoming directorial debut for his comic book The Freshman.

EXCERPT:

Any notable guest star voices you'd like to mention?

Seth: Carrie Fisher is in the show, which is awesome.

Matt: Billy Dee Williams came in and knocked it out of the park for us.

Seth: We got to record Billy Dee before, so we had kind of a rapport with him. And this was just... I can't tell you how much I love Billy Dee Williams. He is so awesome. The tracks he gave us are outrageous. We even wrote a whole sketch for the proper season where Billy Dee himself encounters a fan at the supermarket, we loved him so much.

Ahmed Best came in to do Jar Jar. I can't even express how talented that kid is. Abe Benrubi came back to do our Darth Vader.

Matt: Seth MacFarlane is in it again as the Emperor. Breckin Meyer is Boba Fett again. Seth: Donald Faison makes a great appearance as Gary the Stormtrooper.

Is this the first time you all have worked with Carrie Fisher for Robot Chicken?

Seth: This is the first time she's done Robot Chicken, but I've worked with her before on Austin Powers and we've met a bunch over the years. She was great! She was really game and very fun, and totally engaged in the material.

Milo Ventimiglia's Lightsaber DuelsScreened before the 2008 Star Wars Fan Film Awards was this "last minute" entry -- a collection of lightsaber battles between Heroes actor Milo Ventimiglia and his friends.

What if Peter Petrelli could add the Force to his arsenal of skills on the hit NBC show Heroes? I chat with actor Milo Ventimiglia about his love for Star Wars, his lightsaber duel fan films, what Luke Skywalker and Peter Petrelli have in common.

Excerpt:

Are there any Star Wars characters you identify with the most?I don't know if I identify with any one specifically, but as a kid I wanted to be Return of the Jedi Luke because he was the guy who had all the abilities and was in perfect control of that.

So not whiny New Hope Luke?No, but the funny thing is whiny New Hope Luke was very much like early Peter Petrelli. "I don't know what I'm doing or where I'm supposed to go..."

I don't know if I ever considered your character on Heroes whiny.Oh, Peter was whiny! [laughs] I always love the characters that have these great abilities and they're so focused in how they use them that they weren't abused, and they were used at the right time in the right way. Those are always the characters I'm kind of drawn to. But then again I also love the Han Solo character. He's the everyday guy. He's a guy's guy.

Who do you think is the biggest hero in Star Wars?Yoda, probably because of his perspective. He's a master and in complete control. He sees all the angles and still won't completely get in the way. He'll allow the younger Jedi to make mistakes and then come to him for guidance. Being a young man, you always look for mentors and people who will teach you, but you also want to stand on your own. You have to fight to show everyone you're good enough but we all need our teachers. We all need someone who has been there and done that to give us guidance. In my mind, it's very much a way of life. I know how I was when I was younger -- in my late teens and early 20s -- nobody could tell me what to do. Now as I'm getting older I realize those people were so patient with me, and didn't intrude with how I was doing things but tried to give me just enough to make the right decision. I really value those relationships I have now, especially with my family.

As an actor, which role in the Star Wars films would you have liked to play?Wow, I really don't want to take away from anything. I always liked the fact that Jabba the Hutt wasn't originally a big slug. I thought that was cool, but I don't think I could pull it off. I am fascinated by things like that. I think I'm so enthralled and invested in who those faces were who played those characters that there's no desire to play something in the films. I love being on the outside. Granted, if George Lucas asked me to play a character, I wouldn't say no.

The Monarch's Henchman 21 buys a lightsaber from Dr. Venture at a yard sale. Brock and the Venture clan dress up as Star Wars characters for a party. H.E.L.P.eR robot channels his inner R2-D2. Even Nien Nunb makes an appearance.

Iwan Griffiths, drummer of Welsh band The Automatic, chats with Starwars.com about his love for the saga, his family vacation to Tatooine, why Boba Fett should join the band and how he imagines Bib Fortuna spends his evenings.

What's your fondest Star Wars memory?When I was about 11, I went on holiday with my family to Tunisia and we went to the town where they'd filmed the Tatooine scenes for the films. It was one of the coolest places I've ever been. I got my photo taken in my Yoda T-shirt on Tattooine. So that was pretty special.

Were you the kind of kid who would play with Star Wars toys?I had quite a few Star Wars toys. I still do. My favorite was my lightsaber. I still have it, though it's pretty broken. It was cool though it made noises when you swung it. It sounded awesome!

Why do you still like to collect Star Wars toys and action figures?I buy Star Wars stuff I guess because I still love Star Wars! I love my Han Solo action figure just because he's the coolest character, I reckon. I'm also pretty proud of my talking Yoda. I bought him on our first tour and he'd give good advice when times got tough. [laughs]

As a proud resident of San Francisco, I can tell you I've often daydreamed of how cool it would be if a Star Destroyer hovered over the Golden Gate Bridge as I was stuck in traffic. Or if AT-AT's shared Ocean Beach with joggers and dog walkers.

It looks like a fan had the same brainwaves I did, and made it happen -- at least in video form. Check out this awesome short film by Michael Horn of Star Wars vehicles and ships as they sneak into various video footage around San Francisco all thanks to some creativity and impressive tracking software. Maybe one day tourist snapshots of Coit Tower and cable cars will have the Death Star in the background! A fan girl can dream, can't she?

Get a full tour and review of the 2.5-foot Star Wars Legacy Collection Millennium Falcon from Hasbro, but none other than producer/writer Jesse Alexander. He's worked on such geektastic shows as "Heroes," "Alias" and "Lost" -- and has the Emmy on his desk to prove it.

This is one of the best ways to check out Hasbro's massively detailed Millennium Falcon. Jesse shows us what's inside, what the buttons do when you push them, and gives us a preview of all the glorious sound files. He not only has this great video, but also writes out a few of his initial impressions about the Falcon here on Gizmodo:

This Falcon’s paint job is slick. And so detailed I’m guessing it must’ve been done by next-gen droids, or Jawa slave children with very small hands. All the tech in this Falcon is state of the art. She’s got sound effects up the gundark. Triggered via multiple buttons strategically placed around her sturdy Corellian hull. The orange light at the rear of the cockpit is cool. As is the sweet blue band of engine light that accompanies the jump to hyperspace. But my fave feature has to be the twin LED’s that illuminate when the boarding ramp slowly lowers at the touch of a button. Perfect for lighting up the squishy floor of any odd looking asteroid cave.

One can only hope this magnificent spice smuggler heralds an approaching renaissance from the boffins at Hasbro. The build quality, attention to detail, and sheer number of features on the Legacy Collection Falcon will raise the expectations of Star Wars Fans the republic over. Owning your own freighter ain’t cheap. You may need to sell your mint in-box landspeeder from ’77 to cover the cost. But she’s worth it. See you on the Kessel run! I think 11 parsecs is doable!

A few weeks back I went to Star Wars Celebration Japan in Chiba outside of Tokyo. I had never been to Japan before so the elaborate toilets, immaculate train stations and everyone's super-nice hospitality were a bit of a shocker for this jaded American. In a good way! I had some amazing food, met truly awesome new friends and got to see Japanese Star Wars fans on their own turf. I had a blast!

Here are some of my highlights:

BEST LIKENESS OF GEORGE LUCAS: George in CarboniteAs soon as I took a bunch of photos of this I blog bombed it to everyone I knew from Boing Boing to /Film. Even the celeb-obsessed blog Defamer took notice. This was the thing that got the most press stateside (and still is) from bloggers who wanted to see really weird stuff from CJ. Mission accomplished. I wish we had this thing at Lucasfilm's offices. We already have Jar Jar in carbonite in the ILM lobby, so I'm thinking this would fit nicely in the LFL lobby. HINT HINT. But maybe that's just me. Either way, it's most impressive.

BEST ATTRACTION: Life-size DewbackYeah, that's me on Dewy. This fan-made attraction had the longest lines and the fans loved LOVED loved it. I kinda wish Lucasfilm would buy it for our next Celebration in the States. This thing was AWESOME! I interviewed Goro who made it if you want to find out more: The Dewback Project

CUTEST GIRL COSTUME: Sexy EwokShe was the belle of Celebration Japan -- being asked every few feet to get her photo taken by media, fans and smitten teen boys. Makes you wonder if Ewoks looked like her instead of teddybears with spears, we might have a few more fans of the Yub Nub song.

Well, I am over one hundred pages into the book now. I just picked it back up Thursday night and have been reading it off and on in between chores this weekend. I was wrong about the book. It is likely going to be finished by the end of my five day weekend this week, which is really good for me as I am a slow reader.

Just a curious question: Everyone (I assume) has their own favorite spot to read. Mine is on the crappy torn up couch in my living room where it is usually pretty quiet (we have no tv in there right now). I don't know if saying it is my favorite place for reading, but it is the one place in the house where I get the most reading done.

As the runner-up contestant in Season 6 of "American Idol," singer-songwriter Blake Lewis not only impressed the judges with his vocal talent but also with his skills as a beat boxer which could give Ben Burtt's sound designs a run for the money. Lewis chats with Starwars.com about his appreciation for Wookiees, the sound design in the Podrace and why Darth Vader is more intimidating than "American Idol" judge Simon Cowell.

Comedian and actress Margaret Cho likes her heroes brave, loyal and furry, so it shouldn't be a surprise that Wookiees rate high on her favorite characters list. Taking a quick break from her current standup comedy tour, Cho talks to Starwars.com about her memories of braiding Chewie's hair and how she's breaking in her new entertainment system with the Original Trilogy.

Here's a short excerpt:

Were you the kind of kid who would play with Star Wars toys?I had a bunch of action figures. My favorite of course was Chewbacca. I also remember a kind of furry Chewbacca that was fuzzy and not just hard plastic. I don't know if I dreamt it or if this was my actual toy. I have memories of brushing it, of it coming with an actual brush, and it got gum in it and stuff.

Do you still collect any Star Wars toys, comics, action figures, cards, etc? What is your pride and joy item?My pride and joy is a vintage Chewbacca shirt given to me by Lucas Silveira from the band The Cliks. It is my favorite shirt of all time! My second favorite is my Chewbacca button, given to me by Liam Sullivan.

So it's clear you're a fan of the Wookiee.Chewbacca is so cute. And I want to brush him, or at least braid him. I love him. I want to know what he has in his bag. I think Chewbacca and the Wookiees are the most mysterious characters. I want to know more about them!

Ever wanted to draw Star Wars characters and vehicles just like the professional comic book artists? In this step-by-step series, Star Wars artists and illustrators show you how to draw some of the most beloved characters in the saga.

Graphic storytelling is a respected and centuries-old art form in Japan, and since the end of World War II, comic books -- known in Japan as "Manga" -- have remained the country's dominant medium of entertainment. And over a period of at least the last twenty years, Manga have become increasingly popular with international and especially North American audiences. While every Manga artist has their own artistic flare, you can definitely see similarities in the style as a whole.

The biggest difference you'll notice in the way Manga is drawn from comics in the Western World is the enormous eyes that the characters all have. With larger than life highlights, and refined detail, the contrast in shape and value really make the eyes "pop." While this can often make the characters appear child-like, it also opens the door to making expressions and moods visually interesting.

Here our own Star Wars illustrator Matt Busch explains with these easy-to-follow steps on how to draw a Manga-style portrait of Padmé Amidala.

Craftster Sammi Resendes from Geekcentralstation.blogspot.com recently created Star WarsAmigurumi dolls of Admiral Ackbar, Princess Leia, Yoda, Chewbacca and Han Solo. There's even a Slave Leia! I chat with Sammi about Star Wars Amigurumi and how fans can get started making their own.( Read more...Collapse )